A kitchen checks its hot-held mashed potatoes every 2 hours. At the 2-hour check they read 128°F. What is the correct corrective action?
a.Throw the potatoes out at once; anything found below 135°F is waste
b.Turn the steam table dial up and recheck the potatoes in one hour
c.Reheat the potatoes to 165°F and return them to hot holding
d.Move the potatoes to the cold line and serve them chilled instead
Explanation
Because the potatoes were checked on a 2-hour schedule, they have been below 135°F for no more than 2 hours, which is within the window for corrective action, so discarding them is not required. Reheating to 165°F destroys pathogens that may have grown, and the potatoes can then go back on the line. Turning up a steam table does not reheat food, and cold service does not fix hot food that has already drifted.
Law Reference: FDA Food Code §3-501.16Practice all 500 questions free — no signup required.
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